ai4bharat/Pralekha huggingface dataset:
Ministry of Culture
Media team from Punjab visits Sri City
Sri City, September 6, 2022
Under the ‘Ek Bharat Shreshtha Bharat’ programme, which was launched by Government of India to celebrate the cultural vibrancy of India while establishing a strong mechanism to inculcate nationalism and cultural awareness, as part of their tour to Andhra Pradesh, a 15 member team of Journalists from Punjab have visited Sri City on Monday evening.
Mr. C. Ravindranath, Head, Media & Public Relations extended a warm welcome, and briefed them on the unique features of the business city, and explained, how Sri City stands out as a true manifestation of 'Make in India' campaign in diverse sectors, and its contribution towards substituting imports by significantly multiplying exports is conspicuous. The visitors noted that with the advent of Sri City how the economic landscape of the backward region improved with vibrant industrial activity.
Following the briefing session the team went around the industrial park and observed the blooming industrial activity. They visited the production unit of Vermeiren India Rehab Private Limited, a wholly-owned subsidiary of the Belgium-based Vermeiren Group, which manufactures rehabilitation equipment like wheelchairs, hospital beds, shell chairs, comfort chairs and other allied products. They all interacted with Mr. Syed Riaz Qadri, Managing Director of the company and quizzed on various products and demand for their export across the world.
Thanking Sri City for hosting the visit, Ms. Aneesha Sareen of Hindustan Times said,”Our visit to Sri City was an enriching experience in which we learned firsthand how a Special Economic Zone  operates. Also, we learnt about how the 200 companies from different countries have improved people's lives and empowered the women in the region. With a host of advantages Sri City has drawn investors from all around the world."
Stating that it was a learning experience to visit the Vermeiren India Ltd., that produces sophisticated wheel chars and other products for the world at large, Mr. Karam Parkash of The Tribune in Chandigarh said,"The tour exposed us to Sri City Integrated Business City, which places Andhra Pradesh prominently on the world business and investment map."Mr. Rajesh Bali, IIS, Press Information Bureau  Officer  and Nodal Officer of the Media Team Tour told,“The visit to Sri City was an enthralling experience. It is very heartening to note that women workforce forms more than half of the total manpower. Proud to note that several companies in Sri City are strong markers of ‘Make in India’ initiative and exporting goods to a tune of USD 2 Billion from its inception till date.”
Mr. G. Hari, Asst., General Manager, Marketing, Mr. D. Ravi and Mr. P. Balaji, Public Relation Officials of Sri City conducted the visit, Mr. Krishnamohan, AP Tourism officer coordinated the tour programme organised by the PIB, Vijayawada.
Finance Commission
Meeting of the 15th Finance Commission with the Reserve Bank of India
The 15th Finance Commission headed by Chairman, Shri N.K. Singh today held a detailed meeting with the Governor and Deputy Governors of RBI in Mumbai today.
Key issues raised by RBI Governor, Shri Shaktikanta Das and Finance Commission Chairman, Shri N.K. Singh were discussed in detail at the meeting. These issues included the following:
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The necessity of setting up State Finance Commissions for respective State Governments
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Public Sector Borrowing Requirements
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Continuity of the Finance Commission
It was felt that this was required more in view of the fiscal management requirements of the states, especially given the absence of mid-term reviews of Awards granted by the Finance Commission, as it used to happen earlier with the Awards granted by the Planning Commission
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Need for Expenditure Codes, especially given that expenditure norms vary from state to state
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Role of States in Growth and Inflation, for instance, role of states in Ease of doing Business.
The RBI made a detailed presentation to the Finance Commission, on State Government Finances for 2019-20. The key takeaways are:
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The importance of states in the economy has increased with the shift in composition of government finances.
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Fiscal deficit of states is budgeted to be lower in 2019-20 BE, but RE and actuals deviate significantly .
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Specific factors drive fiscal slippages: these factors include UDAY in the past and farm loan waivers and income support schemes in 2018-19 RE.
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Outstanding debt as percentage of GDP has been rising despite moderation in interest payment as percentage of revenue receipts.
The RBI made another presentation on the issues and challenges of the market borrowings of state governments. The main issues raised in this presentation were the following:
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Increasing orientation of state governments borrowing to markets
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Improving secondary market liquidity – re-issuances, non-standard issuances, widening investor base.
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Risk Asymmetry- Phasing out of ADM, rating of SDLs, valuation of SDLs, more frequent disclosures.
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Strengthening the corpus of CSF/GRF – incentive for increasing the corpus, indicative target of 5% of outstanding liabilities/guarantees by all states.
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Cash Management – States to improve their cash forecasting capabilities, states’ request to consider avenues for short term borrowings.
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Disclosures – Disclosure of high frequency data; budget presentations and release of financial data may be in a) common format b) within narrow time frame.
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Contingent liabilities – lack of reliable data, hence there is a need for standardization in compilation and reporting under FRBM and to enforce uniform ceiling for issue of guarantees.
During its two-day visit to Mumbai, the Finance Commission is slated to have meetings with banks, financial institutions and economists as well.
Ministry of Earth Sciences
Union Minister Dr. Jitendra Singh visits Mausam Bhavan, reviews Monsoon trends at IMD Headquarters
IMD to procure more Radars in coming years
• Monsoon rainfall 10% above normal in June and 26% deficient till date in July
• IMD issues more than 42 million SMS twice a week to farmers through Mkisan portal of Agriculture Ministry
Union Minister of State  Science & Technology; Minister of State  Earth Sciences; MoS PMO, Personnel, Public Grievances, Pensions, Atomic Energy and Space, Dr Jitendra Singh today visited MausamBhavan and reviewed the Monsoon trends at the India Meteorological Department  headquarters, under the aegis of the Ministry of Earth Sciences here today.
The Minister spent over an hour, personally studying the Southwest monsoon trends. He also went to the exclusive Satellite and Radar Sections, and discussed the process of procurement of data on a real-time basis.
Dr Jitendra Singh was informed by the officials that, at present, besides other state-of-art equipment, IMD has 27 radars spread across the country. The number of radars will go up to 50 in coming years, he was told.
While going around the various processing equipment, Dr Jitendra Singh showed keen interest in understanding the analysis of images received through ISRO satellites. He also received an update about the variations in Delhi's air quality.
Stating that weather forecast data analysis is a complex exercise, Dr Jitendra Singh urged the scientists at the IMD to further focus on more accurate forecasting. He asked the officials to step up people-oriented services, particularly for the agriculture sector and disaster areas like flash floods, cyclones and rain downpours, by using Apps and other such latest hi-tech options.
Speaking at a brief presentation the Director General, IMD Dr.MrutyunjaMohapatra informed the Minister that this year the monsoon rainfall was 10 percent above normal in the month of June, but 26 percent deficient till date in July.
For the benefit of farmers, using the portal Mkisan of the Ministry of Agriculture, IMD is at present sending more than 42 million SMS twice a week to farmers across the country, the Minister was told. Dr.Mohapatra said that India is one of the five countries in the world to have the most modern Lightning forecast system in place.
The Hydromet Services of IMD using Radar technology enables flood forecasting in riverine areas. Apart from city specific forecasts, information on flash floods in South Asia is also given through this service.
SS/RKP
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Department of Space
Cabinet approves Memorandum of Understanding between India and Bahrain on Cooperation in the Exploration and Uses of Outer Space for Peaceful Purposes
The Union Cabinet chaired by Prime Minister Narendra Modi was apprised about the signing of Memorandum of Understanding between India and Bahrain on Cooperation in the Exploration and Uses of Outer Space for Peaceful Purposes.
The MoU was signed in March 11, 2019 at Bengaluru by India and on March 28, 2019 at Manama by Bahrain.
Details:
- This MoU shall enable the following potential interest areas of cooperation such as, space science, technology and applications including remote sensing of the earth; satellite communication and satellite based navigation; Space science and planetary exploration; use of spacecraft and space systems and ground system; and application of space technology.
- This MoU would lead to set up a Joint Working Group, drawing members from DOS/ISRO and the Bahrain National Space Science Agency  of the Government of the Kingdom of Bahrain, which will further work out the plan of action including the time-frame and the means of implementing this MoU.
Implementation Strategy and Targets:
The signed MoU would lead to concluding specific implementing Arrangement and setting up of Joint Working Group, to work out the plan of action including the time-frame and the means of implementing this MoU.
Impact:
The signed MoU will provide impetus to explore newer research activities and application possibilities in the field of remote sensing of the earth; satellite communication; satellite navigation; space science and exploration of outer space.
Expenditure involved:
The financial contribution with respect to each specific activity would depend on the nature of Joint activity and will be detailed in corresponding Implementing Agreements  / Contracts.
Benefits:
Cooperation with the Government of the Kingdom of Bahrain through this MoU would lead to develop a joint activity in the field of application of space technologies for the benefit of humanity. Thus, all sections and regions of the country will get benefited.
Background:
- Chief of the Bahrain National Space Science Agency  and the Minister of Transportation and Telecommunication of Bahrain have expressed interest to have space cooperation with ISRO to Indian Ambassador in April 2018.
- As a follow up, on the request of MEA in July 2018, an MoU for India-Bahrain Space Cooperation was drafted and shared with MEA. Subsequently, Bahrain side has given its concurrence and both sides have arrived at mutually agreed version for signing.
Ministry of Railways
Shri Piyush Goyal, Minister of Railways and Commerce & Industry reviews the progress of Dedicated Freight Corridor Corporation India Limited 
DFCCIL to explore the possibility of offering some kind of incentives to contractors willing to take up and finish their work before/within the stipulated time frames
DFCCIL to have a Dashboard for real time 'Km by Km' project monitoring and follow up action by railway officials so that issues and solutions may be resolved on an urgent basis
Institutionalization the mechanism of grievance redressal through the dashboard
Resolution of all issues, including coordination with the States to be done on a Mission mode. The Ministry has already written letters to all the concerned States to fast track the project and resolve any matter concerning coordination matters
Constant monitoring the weekly progress of the project
Shri Piyush Goyal, Minister of Railways and Commerce & Industry, reviewed the progress of Dedicated Freight Corridor Corporation India Limited , which was attended by all the top officials of Railways Board, DFCCIL including CRB and MD/DFCCIL, and the contractual agencies.
During the meeting, the senior officials presented the current status of the project.
Shri Goyal directed the DFFCIL management team and the contractors to take all possible steps to speed up the pace of works on all the sections of the Western DFC  and Eastern DFC . In the review meeting, progress of each individual section was discussed in detail and instructions were given to ensure smooth progress by resolving all hindrances.
In order to fast track the project, Minister suggested a slew of measures including:-
a) Holding regular weekly meetings with all contractors, vendors and suppliers.
b) Work out the possibility of offering some kind of incentives to contractors willing to take up and finish their work before the stipulated time frames.
c) Creation of a Dashboard by DFCCIL for real time 'Km by Km' project monitoring and follow up. This would also be accessible to the Railway Board officials. Provision of dashboard will help in resolution of all contract implementation matters on an urgent basis and would also act as Institutional mechanism for resolving contract related issues through the dashboard .
During the meeting, it was decided that strict monitoring of work of all contractors to be done. Resolution of all issues, including coordination with the States to be done on a Mission mode. The Ministry has already written letters to all the concerned States to resolve the pending issues ofland, ROBs and law & order.
Dedicated Freight Corridors  is one of the largest rail infrastructure projects a  undertaken by the Government of India. The overall cost is pegged at Rs 81,459 crores. DFCCIL has been set up as a special purpose vehicle to undertake planning, development, mobilization of financial resources, construction, maintenance and operation of Dedicated Freight Corridors.
Ministry of Health and Family Welfare
COVID-19 Vaccination Update
More than 24.60 Crore vaccine doses provided to States/UTs
More than 1.49 crore doses still available with States/UTs to be administered
As part of the nationwide vaccination drive, Government of India has been supporting the States and UTs by providing them COVID Vaccines free of cost. In addition, the Govt. of India has also been facilitating direct procurement of vaccines by the States/UTs. Vaccination is an integral pillar of the comprehensive strategy of Government of India for containment and management of the pandemic, along with Test, Track, Treat and COVID Appropriate Behaviour.
Implementation of the Liberalized and Accelerated Phase-3 Strategy of Covid-19 Vaccination has started from 1st May 2021.
Under the Strategy, in every month 50% of the total Central Drugs Laboratory  cleared vaccine doses of any manufacturer would be procured by Govt. of India. It would continue to make these doses available to the State Govts totally free of cost as was being done earlier.
More than 24 crore  vaccine doses have been provided to States/UTs so far, through Government of India  and through direct state procurement category.
Of this, the total consumption, including wastages is 23,11,69,251 doses .
More than 1.49 crore  COVID Vaccine doses are still available with the States/UTs to be administered.
Special Service and Features
Huge opportunities and possibilities for youths in the country: Union Minister Shri Rajeev Chandrasekhar
Kozhikode: August 30, 2022
Union Minister of State for Electronics, Information Technology, Skill Development and Entrepreneurship, Shri Rajeev Chandrasekhar said that there were huge opportunities and possibilities for the youths in the country. The Union Minister was speaking at a debate programme titled ‘New India for Young India-Techade of Opportunities’ organized by the National Institute of Technology , Calicut in its campus here today.
The Minister said that the country was progressing in such a way that Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi's statement that the next decade would belong to India would become a reality. From aerospace to electronics, there were huge possibilities. While, responding to a question, Shri Rajeev Chandrasekhar said that Agnipath was a great opportunity for the youth of the country.
Kozhikode MP Shri M. K. Raghavan, NIT senior officials and others participated in the function.
As a part of the NIT visit, Shri. Rajeev Chandrasekhar interacted with several entrepreneurs who received technical assistance from NIT and also researchers
Later, the Union Minister interacted with the directors of various National Institutes of Electronics and Information Technology from across the country at NIELIT, Kozhikode. During the meeting, Shri Chandrasekhar suggested that NIELITs should work more closely with other higher education institutes of the country like NITs.
The Minister added that NIELITs should take steps to develop the skills required to transform India into a trillion dollar digital economy.
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Ministry of Communications
Department of Posts with its omnipresent network of 1.5 lakh Post Offices take “Har Ghar Tiranga” Programme to every citizen of country
Sell more than 1 crore National Flags in short span of 10 days
4.2 lakh Postal employees enthusiastically propagate message of “Har Ghar Tiranga” in nuke and corners of country
Department of Posts with its omnipresent network of 1.5 lakh Post Offices, has taken “Har Ghar Tiranga” Programme to every citizen of the country. Within a short span of 10 days, India Post has sold more than 1 crore National Flags, through Post offices as well as online, to citizens. These Flags have been sold by the Department at a very economical price of Rs. 25/- . For online sale, the Department has provided free doorstep delivery to any address across the country; more than 1.75 Lakh flags have been purchased online by the citizens through the ePost Office facility.
4.2 lakh strong Postal employees across the country have enthusiastically propagated the message of “Har Ghar Tiranga” in cities, towns and villages, in border areas, in LWE Districts, and in mountainous & Tribal areas. Through Prabhat Pheris, Bike Rally and Choupals sabhas, India Post has taken the message of “Har Ghar Tiranga” to every section of the society. Social Media tools like twitter and facebook have also been extensively used for spreading the message of the programme among digitally connected citizens.
The sale of the National Flag through Post Offices is open till 15 August 2022. Citizens can walk in, to the nearest Post Offices or visit the epost office  and obtain their National Flag and become a part of “Har Ghar Tiranga” campaign. Citizens can also take a selfie with the Flag and upload it on www.harghartiranga.com and register their participation in the largest celebration of New India.
PIB Headquarters
2.3 Kg gold Gold worth Rs. 91.5 lakhs seized by Customs at Chennai Airport
On Thursday based on information one Farjana Abubakkar Siddiqu,27, from Pulianthope and Sathakathulla ,47, from Ramanathapuram, had arrived from Malaysia by Air Asia Flight No.AK-13 and Dubai by Indigo Flight 6E 66 respectively, were intercepted exit. On personal search six bundles of rubbery paste containing gold was found concealed in Farjanas inner garments and stiched inside of her skirt and three bundles were found concealed in rectum of Sathakathulla. Further, two gold bits weighing 40 grams were also recovered from his trouser pockets. On extraction 927 grams was recovered from paste. Total 967 grams of gold valued at Rs. 38.37 lakhs was recovered and seized under Customs Act 1962. Both arrested.
On Wednesday four passengers, Mohamed Sarjoon,30, Adhil Hasim Abdul Nazir,26, Anbalagan Karuppaiah ,61, and Shahul Hamid Zackiriya, 37, all native of Ramanathapuram had arrived from Dubai by Air India Flight AI 906 were intercepted at the exit . On their personal search gold in the form of rubbery paste was found concealed in rectum.On extraction 1343 grams of gold valued at Rs. 53 lakhs was recovered and seized under Customs Act 1962.
Further Investigation is under progress, according to a press release issued by the Commissioner of Customs, Anna International Airport, Chennai.
Ministry of Defence
DRDO conducts successful flight test of Solid Fuel Ducted Ramjet
Defence Research and Development Organisation  successfully carried out a flight demonstration based on Solid Fuel Ducted Ramjet  technology from Integrated Test Range Chandipur off the coast of Odisha at around 1030 hrs on March 05, 2021. All the subsystems, including the booster motor and nozzle-less motor, performed as expected. During the test, many new technologies were proven, including Solid Fuel based Ducted Ramjet technology.
Successful demonstration of Solid Fuel based Ducted Ramjet technology has provided DRDO with a technological advantage which will enable it to develop long range air-to-air missiles. At present, such technology is available only with a handful of countries in the world. During the test, air launch scenario was simulated using a booster motor. Subsequently, the nozzle-less booster accelerated it to the required Mach number for Ramjet operation.
The performance of the missile was monitored using the data captured by Electro Optical, Radar and Telemetry instruments deployed by ITR and confirmed successful demonstration of the mission objectives. The launch was monitored by senior scientists of various DRDO labs, including Defence Research & Development Laboratory , Research Centre Imarat  and High Energy Materials Research Laboratory.
Raksha Mantri Shri Rajnath Singh congratulated the scientistsof DRDO,Indian Air Force and the Industry on the successful flight test of SFDR.
Secretary Department of Defence R&D and Chairman DRDO Dr G Satheesh Reddy also congratulated the team involved in the successful flight test.
ABB/Nampi/KA/DK/Savvy
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Ministry of Education
MHRD Secretary Shri Amit Khare holds meetings with JNU administration and students of JNU
Students will not have to pay the Service and Utility charges, MHRD asks UGC to work out the modalities for bearing the cost of charges
Secretary, MHRD, Shri Amit Khare held a meeting with Vice Chancellor, , Prof. M. Jagadesh Kumar along with Rectors and Registrar of Jawaharlal Nehru University  at 11:30 AM today at Shastri Bhawan, New Delhi. Later, he also met a delegation of JNU students led by president elect of JNUSU Ms Aishe Ghosh at 3.30 pm today.
The University authorities informed the Secretary that the administration is taking all steps to implement the decisions arrived at as per the Record of Discussions held on 10th and 11th December, 2019 in MHRD.
Prof. Jagadesh Kumar also informed that a circular has already been issued by JNU on 09th January, 2020 clarifying that Service and Utility charges for the hostel residents are not being charged from the students. However, as per records of discussions held on 10th and 11th December 2019 the revised hostel room fees is payable by the students.
UGC has been requested to bear the cost of Service and Utility charges. The same was also communicated to the JNU students during the meeting with Secretary today. As informed by VC, more than 3500 students have already registered for the winter session of JNU.
A meeting was also held by Secretary, MHRD with Chairperson, UGC, Dr D.P.Singh today to discuss the matter. Shri Amit Khare later disclosed that the modalities in this regard are being worked out.
In view of the above developments, the Secretary Shri Amit Khare appealed to the students to withdraw their agitation.